Friday, February 27, 2009

jumbo stuffed shells

i crafted this recipe after my lasagna ricotta creation, baking jumbo pasta shells stuffed with the mixture. this makes quite a few shells - enough to feed at least 4 or 5, or makes lots of yummy leftovers for those of us not cooking for as many. :)

start boiling the pasta shells according to the instructions. in a medium saucepan on medium heat, sauté the garlic in the olive oil for a little over a minute. if you are using fresh onion (instead of onion powder), add them into this step. after sautéing, mix in the tomato sauce and paste, along with all spices listed. let simmer on medium-low heat.

chop the steamed broccoli. in blender or food processor, make one batch of the vegan ricotta, adding in the broccoli. in an 8x11 casserole dish, spread 1 or 2 tablespoons of the red sauce to prevent the noodles from sticking. open each shell, and stuff with vegan ricotta allowing enough room to close the shell again. the ricotta measurement is sort of a personal judgment, but i use about one large spoonful.

place shells in dish, facing upwards. pour sauce over all shells, and top with shredded mozzarella if you like. i used tofutti mozzarella slices, torn up and placed on each shell.

bake at 375°f for approximately 35-40 minutes. let cool for 5 minutes before serving.

Hey Miss V!I just roasted my zucchini plain—nothing on ‘em. But they were kinda wet and flimsy. So looking back, I bet they would’ve been awesome if I’d breaded them first. But, as I just posted, I really like them raw.

Looks great! Certainly way better than our cafeteria's version of "vegan stuffed shells" which are stuffed with large chunks of leftover tofu. I admire the fact that they're reusing food, but when I tasted it, I immediately thought, "crime to all vegan culinary efforts."